Hope Is The Thing With Feathers
by The Blueish Rose
Summary: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry: The most prestigious wizarding school you can find. Throw in a group of morons, over demanding teachers, a brainiac house, and what do you get? Who cares! Merlin knows it ll be interesting. Charlotte has never been one to follow the rules, and that included the one unspoken rule that every girl must fawn over Sirius Black. Marauders Era
1. The Soul

**Hola everyone! To those of you reading my Fairy Tail fic...IM SORRY! I just came down with major writers block! Anyway, the other day I was reading Harry Potter again...and I fell in love with it...again...heh so I wrote this story! This is set in the marauders era just by the way.**

**So I`m going to put this out there: Constructive criticism is appreciated however, flame is not. If I see one review that says Diz Buk Sucs atleast tell me _why_ you don`t like it so I can improve my writing! (And amuse myself with more of your horrendous spelling) Yes, I am hoping to make every chapter this long because I hate it when people post chapters that have about 3 words. Antyways I`m going to let you read my story now!  
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_The soul should always stand ajar, ready to welcome the ecstatic experience._

_Emily Dickinson_

I walked swiftly down Diagon alley, trying to ignore all of the commotion. OK, now all I need is a pet and a wand. I spotted Olivanders and quickly walked towards it.

OLIVANDERS: MAKERS OF FINE WANDS SINCE 382 BC

I sighed happily as I came into the dusty quiet room. "Ah, I was hoping I`d see you here Ms. Joyce." I smiled at the man in front of me. "I tried to save the best for last ." was an old, quiet man. He tends to have this look in his eye that just screamed `madness`...and I loved it. Mr. Olivander ran off and came back with a tape measure that automatically started to measure all different types of lengths.

Olivander finally exclaimed "Aha!" And came towards me with a box. "13inches, rosewood, and a snake fang core." He told me. I grimaced to myself when I took the wand in my hands and tried to whirl it around. Nothing happened. "Apparently not." He murmured. He started to go through all kinds of boxes while I took the chance to look around. I saw rows upon rows of long, thin boxes. My observing was soon interrupted by Olivander as he came to me with another wand.

I took hold of the wand and waved it a little, breaking one of his lamps. I slowly put the wand down as Olivander fixed the bulb with a wand of his own. "No, no definitely not." He grumbled as he was taking the wand back to the shelf.

I must have gone through billions of wands. We even had to move some of the boxes, to make room for new ones. The thing is, whenever a wand didn`t work for me, Olivander just got happier and happier. Strange man. I thought.

A box came and bumped me on the head as I yelped, grabbing Olivander`s attention. I picked up the box and the wand that fell out of it, feeling a warm tingling sensation as I picked it up. Olivander took the wand and box out of my hand to inspect it. He hummed. "Hmmm?" I asked. He looked towards me and grinned, "Aurel with phoenix feather core, thirteen and three quarter inches, hard. I haven`t seen this wand for almost 200 years, when I made it. What`s peculiar is, it`s the exact opposite of your mothers wand." I grinned, "Great, I hate my mother anyway!" He looked shocked to see what I just said. The old man ran over to the desk and gave me my wand. "That`ll be twenty Galleons." I picked the money out of my wallet. I`m going to have to go to Gringotts after this.

Since I blew almost all of my money on a wand and books, I made my way to Gringotts. I passed by the gate and went into the massive building with goblins working busily. I walked up to the desk and told the Goblin in a stern voice, "Joyce, vault 798." He looked up with a scared expression on his face. "Of course Ms. Joyce." I smiled at him, "Thank you." He called over another goblin, who ran over. "Clecher, Ms. Joyce would like to go to her vault 798." I smiled at him, getting wary at the way people`s eyes widened at my last name. I suppose I should explain this conundrum.

The Joyce family is Pureblood. They believe in all of that `mudblood` shit, and to tell you the truth, I hated it. I really didn`t see what the big deal was, after all, they`re wizards too. The Joyce family is also looked up to and extremely powerful. I know most of them are big supporters of that one dark wizard, I forgot his name, and they`re hoping I`ll do the same. Well anyway, to put it simply, the Joyce family is scary.

I sighed as I got into the cart, going through massive tunnels, loops, and other complex passageways I knew all too well. Finally, the cart stopped. "Vault 798, key please." I handed him the key and the lantern, knowing he would ask for that next. Clecher opened up the door to reveal piles upon piles of coins. I quickly shoved some into my bag and got out of the place.

I stopped in front of Eeylops Owl Emporium, and went in. I was enveloped in darkness, which I was assuming was for the nocturnal owls. I soon became face to face with a gorgeous owl.

The feathers on the upper portion were brown to black and yellowish brown. The back and sides of the neck exhibited a striping pattern, while his head and forehead had heavy freckling. The plumage on the back had dark patches, while the outer portion of his facial disc appears framed with black-brown spotting. The tail was dark with blackish brown barring.

The owl softly hooted as I reached up to stroke his small, soft head. "Like what you see Miss?" I turned around to find a pleasant old lady standing in front of me. "Of course, he`s beautiful. What type of owl is he?" The woman gave me a warm smile. "He`s an eagle owl. He hasn`t really taken a liking to anyone while he`s been here, so you're the first." I finally decided that I would buy the owl and then leave. _Now that I have everything, I better go home, big day tomorrow. _So I took Talon, my new eagle owl, and started heading to the dungeon I like to call home.

"I`m back!" I came to an empty house, as usual. I picked up a note on the nightstand,

Charlotte,

Have to work late, don`t wait up for me, have one of the house elves make you dinner.

-Henry Joyce

Not even love dad this time? He`s starting to slip. "Jody?" I called. No response. I turned around and exclaimed with surprise as I found the small house elf standing in front of me. "Don`t scare me like that!" I practically whispered, holding a hand to my heart. "Jody is sorry, would Mistress like anything to eat?" I smiled warmly at her. "Yes that would be great. Thank you." I saw Jody visibly relax. Once she disappeared I returned up to my room, meeting the sterile, white, environment. I sighed and triple checked everything I had.

I saw Jody pop up in the doorway, nearly giving me another heart attack. "Mistress Charlotte, dinner is ready." I waved my hand at her, "How many times do I have to remind you, call me Charlie. And could you bring it here please? I`m not really in the mood to eat at an empty dinner table, _again." _Jody nodded and went off. I walked over to a whitewood desk and sat down, waiting for Jody to come back with dinner. I didn`t wait long, because Jody soon came with some shrimp and macaroni.

I internally licked my lips when I was greeted by the heavenly smell. I said my thanks to Jody and dug in.

Once I was finished I laid down in my bed, just thinking. I thought about so many things, about my teachers, classes, maybe make some friends. _Tomorrow will be the day I finally get out of here. _With that in mind, I went into a nice, dreamless, peaceful slumber.

* * *

_How dare someone ruin my slumber! What was that pecking? Is it a fly? No. Too sharp. _I opened my eyes to find my own Eagle owl, Talon staring at me. "Gahh! Talon you scared me!" Talon hooted softly as I stroked his feathers. I checked my watch and jumped up with fright. "I`m going to miss the train!" I picked up everything and stuffed it into my trunk. "Jody! Can you apparate me to Kings Cross station?" Jody appeared. "Of course Mistress Charlie, but what about breakfast?" I smiled at her. _She finally called me Charlie! "_I`ll just buy something from the trolley." I replied, taking hold of her hand. I felt the familiar vacuum feeling as I was sucked up into thin air.

I found myself in the unfamiliar presence of muggles. I looked around to see that I was, in fact, alone. _Of course your alone, I`m sure all these muggles would find a small house elf very fascinating._ I mentally scolded myself. I walked up to see the platforms 9 and 10. I walked between them, ready to run into the side of ten when a small, bushy headed girl came up to me. "Excuse me miss, but do you know where I can find Platform 9 ¾?"

I smiled at her. "Are you a first year?" She nodded. "So am I! Now you can walk straight into that wall and you`ll go right through. Don`t worry, you won`t crash." She seemed pretty scared, so I told her, "We can both go at the same time if you`d like." She nodded shyly. I stood next to her and prepared to go through the wall with her.

"Wait! What about my mum and dad?" I looked behind us to see two parents looking straight at me with wonder. "Sorry, but are they wizards?" She shook her head `no`. "Oh well, non-magical beings aren`t allowed to come into the platform." She quickly ran back to them as they said their goodbyes and kissed eachother. I immediately felt awkward and out of place. I shuffled my feet as I waited for the bushy-haired girl to finish. She came towards me, wiping her tears. I smiled at her, noticing how she instantly relaxed. Again, we stood next to eachother and ran towards the wall.

We were greeted by the loud, happy chatter of the rest of our classmates. I looked to her and grinned at her gaze filled with wonder. I looked away for a second, and then she was gone. I shrugged to myself and headed to the back of the train to put my luggage in, only getting out my robes. I walked into the door of the train, trying to find an empty compartment.

Unfortunately, there were none, so I walked into a random one, finding it empty except for the bushy-haired girl from earlier. "Sorry. Do you mind? Everywhere else is full." She smiled at me and nodded towards the seat in front of her. "Not at all. I`m Marlene by the way. Marlene Mckinnon." I smiled back at her, "I`m Charlotte Joyce. But you can call me Charlie." She nodded as we sat in an awkward silence for a while. "So, are you muggle-born?" She asked me.

I could tell she instantly regretted it, thinking it might have been offending me. "Not at all, what makes you say that?" I smiled at her, just to reassure her that I wasn`t offended in the slightest. "Well, I didn`t see your parents, so I kind of assumed that…" She trailed. "Oh, well my mum`s dead, and my dad couldn`t make it." I told her. She looked a bit remorseful. "Hey, don`t feel bad, I got over a long time ago." She perked up a bit. The trolley lady came to our compartment, "Anything off the trolley dearie?" I smiled at her, "Yes a spot of tea would be great, thanks."

I bought some tea and Bertie Botts every flavor beans. I held them up to her. "Would you like some?" She nodded and stuck her hand in to pick up a rather nasty looking green one. I stifled a giggle as I saw her grimace at the taste. I finally couldn`t hold it in anymore and burst out laughing. "You. Should. See. Your. Face. Right. Now!"

I could tell she didn`t think it was funny at first, but after a while she burst out laughing too. The whole way we were trying the Beans, trying to see who was braver. Being the daredevil I was, I of course won. A rather strange looking boy with round glasses came into our apartment, "Sorry, but have you seen a boy named Sirius Black anywhere?" We both shook our heads. He nearly collapsed onto the seat right next to me. I said, "Oh please, don`t let me bother you, even though you`re only violating my personal space." He grinned up at me and reached for my jelly beans, "Thanks, really appreciate it." I rolled my eyes and snatched the jelly beans away from him. I could see Marlene trying to stifle a giggle as he made a pouty face. "No! Now get out!" Right when I finished saying that, the devil himself came into our compartment.

_Not another moron. _A curly, long haired boy came to sit across from the boy right next to me. "James! I was looking all over for you!" The so-called James grinned at the other boy. "Well it hasn`t exactly been a walk in the park for me either, you know. That Snivellus can sure cast a hex." _I didn`t even want to know. _I scoffed, making the curly haired boy finally notice me.

"And who might this one be?" The boy smirked while James tried to introduce me. "These are newly-found friends….uh, what`s your name?" I snorted at his idiocy. Marlene, however caved. "M-marlene Mckinnon." The boy nodded towards me, "And you?" I scoffed. "Like I would tell you my name!" I tried to say in my coldest voice, but the boy only smirked. "Don`t you want to know my name, though? Or do you already know it?" I dismissed his question immediately. "Don`t know, don`t care. Now leave."

My luck only seemed to get worse, because _two more morons_ came in. "Great, just great." I mumbled to myself. "James! You found Sirius! You were taking so long Peter and I started to look for you." A boy with kind eyes and short hair said. After he walked in a boy walked in after him. _Ew…_Let`s just keep it at that boy is not very attractive.

The boy with long hair finally gestured towards me, "Oh yeah, just we were trying to get this girl to tell us her name. While the one across from her is Marlene Mckinnon." Marlene gave a shy smile and a little wave. The boy with kind eyes sighed and sat down, having the not-so-attractive boy follow him. Now I was in the middle of James and the boy with short hair. Across from me, poor Marlene had to sit next to the annoying boy with long hair, while the other one sat on the end.

The boy on my left, (the kind eyes boy) finally said, "Did you introduce yourself first?" _Well at least this one has manners. Not to mention he`s cute too. _The annoying one seemed to ponder this. "Alright then, I`m Sirius Black." He held out his hand for me to shake. I ignored it and mumbled, "Pleasure." This only seemed to amuse him even more. _Stupid git. Can`t you see when you`re not wanted!_

The nice one started to cough, sounding suspiciously like a laugh. "I`m Remus, Remus Lupin." I smiled back at him. "Great." The one sitting next to Black seemed to stutter, "P-p-p-peter P-p-p-p-pettigrew." I smirked, "Nice to meet you." Finally the one next to me, James smirked, "And I am the ALL-MIGHTY JAMES POTTER" He practically screamed in my ear. "Stupid bloke! That was right in my ear! _Scilencio._" James opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. I smirked as everyone else gaped at me.

"What?" I asked them. Remus cleared his throat, "Nothing, we better get changed, I`m sure we are to arrive soon." I nodded and ushered them out. I took my jumper off and was about to strip my T-Shirt, until Sirius came back in, making Marlene and I both scream. He chuckled in amusement, "Sorry, I just never got your name." I looked at him skeptically, "You won`t leave until I give it to you, will you?" He nodded, "Fine, I`m Charlotte, but I prefer to be called Charlie." He grinned, said goodbye, and left.

_Finally. _I thought as I was getting into my robes. I locked the door and sighed. I heard a giggle from Marlene, and couldn`t help but start laughing myself. And there we were, two crazed first years, laughing about absolutely nothing.

"Firs` years! O`er `ere!" I stepped out of the train, only to see a giant man holding a lantern. I saw the group of morons (Named by yours truly) gawking at the huge man. I smirked and went up to him. "Excuse me, but who are you?" The big man chuckled, having a twinkle in his eye. "Rubeus Hagrid, keeper of keys." I smiled at him, "Pleased to meet you, I`m Charlotte, but everyone calls me Charlie." Hagrid smiled, "Pleased ta meet yer` Charlie."

I shook his hand, looking back at the crowd who was staring at me. "Is she mental?!" I heard Sirius whisper to James, "Talking to a giant like that will get you crushed!" I scoffed at their attitudes, and went back to Marlene. "Morons…" I murmured only for Marlene to hear me, when she gave a quiet giggle.

We followed Hagrid into a series of boats. "C`mon now! Four ter a boat." Marlene and I were paired with two boys who looked very nervous. I decided to smile at them, noticing they relaxed almost instantly. And with that, the boats were off.

We went as Hagrid pulled a curtain of vegetation out of our way. I gasped with shock as I saw the castle. It was _huge_! There were a series of towers and turrets, and if you tried to follow anyone of them anywhere, you would just lose yourself. I turned to see everyone else gawking at the castle. Marlene seemed to be one of the most surprised out of them all.

Before long, it was time to get out of the boats. We followed a long, winding, dirt road up to a series of massive doors. Soon enough, a very tall woman with a pointed nose came before us. I could tell at first sight by her aura that she was _not_ meant to be crossed.

"Welcome to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I am Professor McGonagall." She began, "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory and spend free time in your house common room.

'The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule-breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honour. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours.

'The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarted yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting." Her eyes lingered for a moment on Peter Pettigrew, who had dirt on his nose. "I will return when they are ready for you," She said," Please wait quietly." And with that, she left.

Everyone started talking amongst each other. "I really hope I`ll be in Gryffindor." Marlene said to me adoringly, "I`m fine with any of them, as long as it`s not Hufflepuff, I don`t want to be a _poof_." I murmured. Actually, I also didn`t want to end up in cursed _Slytherin. _McGonagall came back, "Follow me now, and be on your best behavior." I seemed to notice how her gaze lingered on the group of Morons, I couldn`t help but snicker. We walked through the hall, which was massive. The ceiling had a starry night sky on it, as if the roof itself just opened up to the heavens.

I looked around, seeing hundreds of kids, all snickering at us. We stopped at the front, to see a stool and a patched up hat. "We will be calling names randomly, just in case some of you think there is an _advantage." _I surely hoped I wasn`t first. Just then, the hat opened up a wrinkle and _spoke. _

"I am the hat that`s seen them all,

Each and every student to pass through this hall:

I`ve sorted the great and the crude,

As well as those of evil mood:

Wear your house colors with pride,

And now let`s see where you`ll abide;

Ravenclaw, with colors bronze and blue,

A house of those clever and studious in hew;

Hufflepuff with colors yellow and black,

A house where friendliness is the knack;

Gryffindor with colors red and gold,

A house of those brave and bold;

Slytherin with colors silver and green,

A house where great power is seen;

So put me on and then you`ll see,

If your colors are opposite or complementary!"

Everyone applauded the hat. Professor McGonagall walked back towards the stool and picked the hat up. She unrolled the scroll, reading the list. "Goodall, Diane" A young girl walked up to the stool as the professor put the hat on top of her head. There was a moment`s pause when "HUFFLEPUFF!" The girl looked relieved as the cheering coming from one of the houses was louder than the rest.

"Battle, Dorcas." A particularly nasty girl went up to the stool. "GRYFFINDOR! "And that`s how it went, they went up to the stool, put the hat on, and then the hat called out their proper house. A few more were called, until, "Black, Sirius." The curly haired boy made his way to the hat, almost _sauntering. _I quietly laughed to myself.

Black took almost a whole three minutes. I crossed my fingers, hoping I wouldn`t be put in the same house as him. "GRYFFINDOR!" Everyone seemed taken aback. A black, in Gryffindor? No one has every heard of such a thing. My thoughts were interrupted when the next one was called, "Potter, James."

The boy walked up to the stool. The hat barely touched his head when it screamed, "GRYFFINDOR!" The rest of the morons were put in Gryffindor too. Soon, there were only about five people left. "McKinnon, Marlene."

I whispered to her, "Good luck." She smiled at me and went up to the stool. The hat was there for about one minute as it screamed, "RAVENCLAW!" I cheered with the rest of them. After that, a few more people went, then it was just me and another boy. "Joyce, Charlotte." I exhaled all of my tension as I tried to relax. I heard the hall quiet down, while most of the Slytherins were snickering. Right then, I wanted to scream at them, "I`M NOT MY MOTHER!" But I couldn`t.

I went to the stool and put the hat one, letting it fall below my nose as I was enveloped in darkness.

"Ah, another Joyce…hmmm but you`re different from your family_." _A small voice said in my head. _Damn right I am, _I thought. "Ha! So, you don`t want to be a Slytherin eh? Well you wouldn`t be right there anyway_." _I relaxed almost instantly. "But where to put you…_" _The hat said again.

_Well, I don`t know, you`re the all-seeing hat aren`t you? _The hat laughed. "Do you know why I barely touch some people`s heads?" _Because you quickly know which house they belong in? _"Sometimes, I would never shirk my duties for personal preferences but seriously, some people`s minds are just…" It shuddered on my head, and I laughed, not realizing the whole Great Hall would hear it.

"Now stop distracting me by talking, I need to figure out which house you belong to." _Well, technically you started the inquisition and also, I`m thinking, not talking. _I heard the hat laugh. "Very well, I knew where you would go from the start, I just wanted to see if I was completely right." _Well? _"RAVENCLAW!"

I was knocked out of my trance and conversation with the rather pleasant hat. I saw the hat get taken off of me and I looked around, wincing slightly from the light. Some people were speechless, mainly Slytherins. _That`s right, I`m not my mum. Watch and learn. _I walked over to my house table and sat next to Marlene, whom I smiled at.

She smiled back and I felt a tap on my shoulder. I came face to face with a blonde haired boy, who looked like he was in his last few years of Hogwarts. "Robert Hillicard, prefect of the Ravenclaw house." I shook his hand, "Charlotte Joyce, but I`d prefer it if you`d call me Charlie." Robert grinned, "Welcome to Ravenclaw, Charlie." I grinned back, "Pleasure to be here." He thought for a moment, "What happened between you and the hat?" I shrugged, "Whatever do you mean?"

He looked a little taken aback, "Well why were you up there for so long? Why did you start laughing in the middle? And why were you put in Ravenclaw if you`re a Joyce?" I realized that this must be what separates Ravenclaw from the rest of the houses. They asked questions and took your feeling into almost no consideration. _I rather like this house. It`s pretty cutthroat. _"Well first, I had a rather pleasant conversation with the hat." He sat there with his mouth open, "Second, the hat said something rather amusing that I couldn`t help but laugh at, and third, I am _nothing _like my family."

Robert sat there for a moment, taking everything into consideration, finally, he grinned. "Well that was nice to know, thank you." I was about to reply, but a certain old man with a long, white beard stood up and clanked his glass. _Dumbledore. _

"Thank you everyone for coming here today, now I would like to say a few things. Do not eat the orange-yellow bean from Bertie Botts Every Flavored Beans, for I have recently found that one to be vomit flavored…" I grimaced and laughed with the rest of the crowd.

"And with that, let the feast…" He paused for dramatic measure "Begin." In front of us loads upon loads of food appeared. I looked at it all, realizing the only thing I ate today were jellybeans, and dug in. _Well looks like this might be a great year after all._

* * *

**Awww so sweet! Here`s a sneak peek at the next chapter!**

_"No...no. I don`t know what I did!" I practically screamed. The prefect, Robert, came to my aid. "You better open it, it`ll be worse if you don`t." I slowly picked it up, as if it might burst into flames, which, knowing my father, is actually possible._

**...and another one, just because I love you!**

_"YOU KNOW WHAT, BLACK? YOU CAN GO TO HELL FOR ALL I CARE. YOU ARE AN INCONSIDERATE, SELFISH, WANKY, POXY, PIKEY, LITTLE TWAT. WHY DON`T YOU JUST TAKE A LONG WALK OFF OF A SHORT PEIR!"_

**Fiesty huh? Review! *Puppy eyes* Pweeez?**


	2. Friends

**Well I tried to update as fast as I can! I got one follower from my last chapter (still no reviews) -.- I guess I should be thankful considering this IS the Harry Potter FaFiction site. Well anyway, enjoy!**

_My friends are my estate._

_Emily Dickinson_

I was stuffed. I had 3 house elves, and two personal chefs, but never in my life have I had something so delicious. After we all had our fill, Dumbledore dismissed us to go to our common rooms, while the Prefects show us around. We were directed by the one I was talking to earlier, Robert.

Robert led us out of the Great Hall and started showing use around. "Congratulations! I'm Prefect Robert Hilliard, and I'm delighted to welcome you to Ravenclaw House. Our emblem is the eagle, which soars where others cannot climb; our house colors are blue and bronze, and our common room is found at the top of Ravenclaw Tower, behind a door with an enchanted knocker. The arched windows set into the walls of our circular common room look down at the school grounds: the lake, the Forbidden Forest, the Quidditch pitch and the Herbology gardens. No other house in the school has such stunning views.

"Without wishing to boast, this is the house where the cleverest witches and wizards live. Our founder, Rowena Ravenclaw, prized learning above all else – and so do we. Unlike the other houses, who all have concealed entrances to their common rooms, we don't need one. The door to our common room lies at the top of a tall, winding staircase. It has no handle, but an enchanted bronze knocker in the shape of an eagle. When you rap on the door, this knocker will ask you a question, and if you can answer it correctly, you are allowed in. This simple barrier has kept out everyone but Ravenclaws for thousands of years.

"Some first-years are scared by having to answer the eagle's questions, but don't worry. Ravenclaws learn quickly, and you'll soon enjoy the challenges the door sets. It's not unusual to find twenty people standing outside the common room door, all trying to work out the answer to the day's question together. This is a great way to meet fellow Ravenclaws from other years, and to learn from them – although it is a bit annoying if you've forgotten your Quidditch robes and need to get in and out in a hurry. In fact, I'd advise you to triple-check your bag for everything you need before leaving Ravenclaw Tower." We all chuckled slightly to ourselves.

"Another cool thing about Ravenclaw is that our people are the most individual – some might even call them eccentrics. But geniuses are often out of step with ordinary folk, and unlike some other houses we could mention, we think you've got the right to wear what you like, believe what you want, and say what you feel. We aren't put off by people who march to a different tune; on the contrary, we value them!

"Speaking of eccentrics, you'll like our Head of house, Professor Filius Flitwick. People often underestimate him, because he's really tiny (we think he's part elf, but we've never been rude enough to ask) and he's got a squeaky voice, but he's the best and most knowledgeable Charms master alive in the world today. His office door is always open to any Ravenclaw with a problem, and if you're in a real state he'll get out these delicious little cupcakes he keeps in a tin in his desk drawer and make them do a little dance for you. In fact, it's worth pretending you're in a real state just to see them jive." We all started laughing, the atmosphere starting to become less and less awkward.

"Ravenclaw house has an illustrious history. Most of the greatest wizarding inventors and innovators were in our house, including Perpetua Fancourt, the inventor of the lunascope, Laverne de Montmorency, a great pioneer of love potions, and Ignatia Wildsmith, the inventor of Floo powder. Famous Ravenclaw Ministers for Magic include Millicent Bagnold, who is currently in power, and defended the wizarding celebrations all over Britain with the words, 'I assert our inalienable right to party'. There was also Minister Lorcan McLaird, who was a quite brilliant wizard, but preferred to communicate by puffing smoke out of the end of his wand. Well, I did say we produce eccentrics. In fact, we are also the house that gave the wizarding world Uric the Oddball, who used a jellyfish for a hat. He's the punch line of a lot of wizarding jokes.

"As for our relationship with the other three houses: well, you've probably heard about the Slytherins. They're not all bad, but you'd do well to be on your guard until you know them well. They've got a long house tradition of doing whatever it takes to win – so watch out, especially in Quidditch matches and exams.

"The Gryffindors are ok. If I had a criticism, I'd say Gryffindors tend to be show-offs and don't know the line between 'bravery' and 'recklessness'. They're also much less tolerant than we are of people who are different; in fact, they've been known to make jokes about Ravenclaws who have developed an interest in levitation, or the possible magical uses of troll bogies, or ovomancy, which (as you probably know) is a method of divination using eggs. Gryffindors haven't got our intellectual curiosity, whereas we've got no problem if you want to spend your days and nights cracking eggs in a corner of the common room and writing down your predictions according to the way the yolks fall. In fact, you'll probably find a few people to help you.

"As for the Hufflepuffs, well, nobody could say they're not nice people. In fact, they're some of the nicest people in the school. Let's just say you needn't worry too much about them when it comes to competition at exam time.

"I think that's nearly everything." He paused," Oh yes, our house ghost is the Grey Lady. The rest of the school thinks she never speaks, but she'll talk to Ravenclaws. She's particularly useful if you're lost, or you've mislaid something. Also, everything labeled in our common room is latin,just used for intellectual reasons.

"I'm sure you'll have a good night. Our dormitories are in turrets off the main tower; our four-poster beds are covered in sky blue silk eiderdowns and the sound of the wind whistling around the windows is very relaxing.

"And once again: well done on becoming a member of the cleverest, quirkiest and most interesting house at Hogwarts." He finished. We arrived at the door and no one seemed to want to rap the knocker. I finally stepped up, _Wusses. _I took the knob and knocked three times.

"This thing all things devours:

Birds, beasts, trees, flowers;

Gnaws iron, bites steel; Grinds hard stones to meal;

Slays king, ruins town,

And beats high mountains down."

I pondered what she was saying for a moment with everyone else. After a few minutes, I finally got the answer, "Is the answer time?" I asked the brass eagle. The door swung open to reveal a beautiful common room. We all walked in.

It was a dome shaped room. Like the Great hall, the ceiling was covered with the night sky. There was another dome shape that seemed to connect to the room with a statue of a pleasant-but-stern-looking woman holing books.

Upon further inspection, I realized the connected dome was a library, and a rather large one at that. In the very center there was circle of marble floor with blue carpet surrounding it. In the marble floor there were words engraved, scientia potentia est_. Knowledge is Power. _I translated in my mind. Scattered around the common room were chess sets, couches, and very cozy-looking chairs.

I heard people chattering amongst our crowd of 1st years. I looked back at them and yawned, "Well I`m off to bed, see you in the morning." The all said some things along the lines of G'nite, and with that, the boys went down the left stairs, and the girls went up the left.

I walked into my room, revealing two-four poster beds. I went back to the door to see who I was rooming with. Marlene popped up in front of me. "Hello Charlie, guess we`re roomies!" I grinned at her, thinking of all the crazy nights to follow this one. "As much as I would love to party and stuff, I`m rather tired so…" I didn`t finish my sentence, because Marlene was already asleep. I smiled to myself, _not a bad start, Charlie, not bad at all._

I awoke with a start. Talon was poking at my nose. I woke up Marlene, "Marlene get up! We`re going to be late on our first day!" She groaned. "MARLENE YOU BETTER GET YOUR SORRY ARSE OUT OF BED OR SO HELP ME I`LL-" Marlene put her hand over my mouth. "I`m up, don`t worry." I nodded towards the shower.

"You or me?" I pointed to her, saying how she still had her hand over my mouth. I took it off, "Don`t take too long, I need one too!" She nodded and was in and out of the shower in ten minutes.

"Time?" I asked her. "We have about 15 more minutes." I nodded and did a record-breaking shower of 5 minutes. I got out, put my robes on, and head out the door.

Marlene was right behind me when we were on our way to transfiguration, with Gryffindor. We needed to ask the Gray Lady where our class was, and she showed us the way. Marlene and I thanked her, and made our way into the class, revealing that our teacher, nor have any other students, have gotten there yet. We made our way to two empty desks, waiting for everyone else to show up.

Everyone started showing up, one by one. They started trailing into class as we sat there. Soon, everyone but two people had shown up. _It`s the main two from the group of morons. _God, if only I could knock some sense into them.

I failed to notice the cat perched on top of the Professors desk until the two boys had shown up. "Good, we made it." Black told Potter. _Ah if only they would have been caught by the teacher. That would have been amusing. _And it seemed as if I was on God`s good side today, because at that moment, the cat turned into the Professor. Professor McGonagall.

Everyone in the classroom gasped with wonder. "I should hope that you boys would not be late to class again." I could tell I was going to love it here at Hogwarts.

That day was an 'introduction day' as the professors called it. It meant we took all of our classes on that one day, just so we could see where all of them were, what they did, and what we needed for that specific class.

All of the required classes of first years were: Astronomy, Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, History of Magic, Potions, and Transfiguration. As far as I could tell, I was best at Potions, Charms, and Defense Against the Dark Arts. We had three classes with Gryffindor, (Astronomy, DADA, and Transfiguration) two with the Hufflepuffs, (History of Magic and Potions) and two with the Slytherins, (Herbology and Charms.)

It was a tough schedule I know. And we had homework, from almost _every _teacher. The only teacher who had the decency to give us our first day off was Professor Flitwick, who was starting to become my favorite teacher.

We didn`t have a Quidditch class that year, because some kid went insane last year from bumping his head. Still, I couldn`t wait until next year when we would actually be able to play.

Don`t even get me _started_ on the Morons though. It seemed they thought we were friends, and that is was 'okay' to insult and play practical jokes on me. Peter Pettigrew seemed to be their follower, as if he worshipped the ground the morons walked on. Remus seemed to be the only _sensible_ one of the group. If he weren`t with the morons I`d actually say we could be friends. One bad part is, whenever the morons bully or pick on other students, he seems to turn a blind eye.

There was Potter. He. Was. _Mental_. No more, no less. That, my friends, is the conclusion I have come to. Then there is the last and least, Sirius Black. Oh, how I loathed him. He didn`t seem to care for anyone but himself. He was a narcissistic, pig headed, most egotistical, bastard that has ever lived. Not to mention he`s handsome, which only fuels the fire for my hatred.

I laid down on my bed once I was finished with homework. I was _exhausted_. Tomorrow will be better, I know it will. With this in mind, I fell into a deep, peaceful, slumber.

That morning wasn`t better. At all. We were actually able to get to the Great Hall in time for mail. Talon came and dropped a scarlet, red letter. I stopped in my tracks, frozen to the spot. Everyone near me also stopped. I could tell Marlene didn`t know what it was.

"No...no. I don`t know what I did!" I practically screamed. The prefect, Robert, came to my aid. "You better open it, it`ll be worse if you don`t." I slowly picked it up, as if it might burst into flames, which, knowing my father, is actually possible.

I slowly opened the howler up, to where it revealed a mouth with razor sharp teeth. "CHARLOTTE JOYCE!" The thing screamed at me. I cowered down into my seat. "I AM VERY DISAPPOINTED IN YOU! YOU PUT YOURSELF INTO RAVENCLAW! RAVENCLAW! EVERY JOYCE HAS BEEN A SLYTHERIN, BUT YOU DECIDED TO BE IN RAVENCLAW." I could tell that he was eye-twitching angry.

You see, there are three levels of my dad`s anger. There was the first level, sternly angry. The second level was when his mustache twitched. While the third and angriest level is eye-twitching angry. This voice of his is eye-twitching angry.

"HOW DO YOU FEEL!? BREAKING AN IMPORTANT FAMILY TRADITION! YOUR MOTHER WENT TO SLYTHERIN, AND HER MOTHER BEFORE THAT, AND HER MOTHER BEFORE THAT!" I could feel the back of my eyes burning. "I`m sorry." I whispered. By that time, everyone was looking at me with either sympathy, pity, or amusement. The Slytherins seemed to consist of the latter option.

"MY DAUGHTER WILL NOT BE ANYTHING OTHER THAN A SLYTHERIN!" I was consumed with rage. "No." I told the letter sternly. Knowing full and well everyone was watching. "NO! NO?!" The letter repeated.

"You heard me, " I replied, "I like it in Ravenclaw and you have no right to tell me what to do."

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?! I`M YOUR FATHER!" The letter screamed. I kept myself from wincing as the letter almost bust open my eardrums.

"You? My father?" I scoffed, "I haven`t seen or heard from you in over 5 years. 5 YEARS! The first time I actually do hear your voice is when you`re sending me a howler about something I have absolutely no control of! Even if I did, I would _still _choose to be in Ravenclaw, because I don`t want to be in fucking Slytherin! I don`t want to be like the rest of the family! Don`t you understand?! I just want to be me!" I said in a pleading voice, hoping my father would understand.

"YOU ARE NO DAUGHTER OF MINE." And with that, the howler tore itself up. I sat back into my seat, noticing how everyone was avoiding my gaze. Marlene placed a hand on my shoulder, "You ok? "She asked, I simply nodded_. If only that were true_.

The rest of the day went as expected, people chose not to talk to me, figuring I couldn`t be bothered at the moment. But, they couldn`t be more wrong. I know I shouldn`t say this, being the antisocial person I am, but _I have never felt so alone._

It was that night when it hit me. _I`m being such a big baby. When have I ever cared what my dad thought of me? Never! So why am I so beat up about him disowning me now? I always wanted to be excluded from the family anyways, so I should stop feeling sorry for myself and make him regret the day he decided to leave._

I went to breakfast that day as happy as I could be. I held my head up high and met everyone`s gaze. Most everyone either turned away in embarrassment or just held my gaze, daring me to break first. I`m guessing you know the latter was usually portrayed by Slytherins. They wanted to break me. They wanted me to come running to them, begging them to be in their pureblood house. They were saying that all in a gaze. If I broke away, I was entering submission. I didn`t break away.

I held their gaze steadily, as if it were any staring contest. You could say, I almost looked nonchalant. Non-caring. In other words, not really giving a flying fuck. I suppose that`s accurate.

I finally got one Slytherin to break away, and I nearly grinned in my victorious moment. I turned around, only to meet another pair of eyes. Sirius Black.

He sauntered over to me, smirking. Then Sirius did something unthinkable, he sat down next to me. In the _Ravenclaw_ table.

I gaped at him, "Are you _mental_?" I hissed. This time he was the one to use the nonchalant attitude. "No, why would you say that?" He shrugged. "I`m sure your eyes need to be checked because this is the Ravenclaw house." I said very slowly, as if he were a child. He seemed pissed off by my tone. "No, if anything I would need my eyes checked because I looked at your fat ass face for so long." He snapped.

I looked up at him, and he seemed to regret saying what he did. I mean I know I was a little overweight, but I couldn`t have been that ugly, right? To hell with it, I don`t really care, my personality and brains make up for it...right?

"I`m sorry I didn`t mean-"He started, "No you knew what you were saying and exactly what you meant." I cut him off. "But I hope that you won`t find it rude if I walk away right now, with the parting words of: You`re a narcissistic, egotistical, cheeky, little git." And with that, I walked away from my table, suddenly not feeling so hungry.

Soon the first term passed over, very quickly. I got O`s across the board on my very first report card. I was also able to go to every one of our classes without getting lost, not to mention I was the `go-to` girl for unsolvable riddles.

Prefect Robert and I had actually become quite good friends. He would sit beside me quite often at our table, and after a while of talking, I figured out he skipped a grade. I guess you could say I had a _slight _crush on Robert. _Slight._ You really couldn`t blame me. He was quite charming and would always help me out when something was wrong. One time, I had lost my essay which was 4 feet long (scandalous I know) But Robert spent the whole day looking for it with me. There was also the fact he was undoubtedly handsome, very clever, good at Quidditch, and…_way out of my league. _

It seemed being around more girls who were gorgeous, had made me more and more insecure about myself. Everytime I looked into the mirror, I couldn`t help but compare myself to them. I think this all started when Robert got a girlfriend, Kelly Goodchild, third year in Hufflepuff.

Now, I will say this once and only once, Kelly was absolutely stunning. She was fully developed (which rivaled my A cups.) She had curves in all the right places (Which rivaled my curves outward, not the other way around.) She also had long, beautiful blonde hair, and big, blue eyes (Which rivaled my very short Auburn bob, and plain haze/brown eyes.) So basically I was the fat, glasses girl who was always a friend, while Kelly was a perfect bubbly airhead, who was a good shag. _Well, this turned out well._

* * *

Lately, it seemed Sirius Black had been bothering me more and more. It was as if he wanted me to burst and scream at him, which I did.

"Late Miss Joyce." Professor Beery announced as I walked into our class. "Sorry professor, every staircase I went onto, they always moved." I told him. Marlene had a stomach virus and she practically studied the whole school of Hogwarts about six times, just so she wouldn`t get lost. She also figured out a pattern with the stairs by looking at the map. So obviously, since we were practically best friends, she was the one who was able to lead me everywhere.

I scoffed as I saw most of the Slytherins snickering at me. "Well no matter. Now that I`ve seen what you`re capable of, today you will be getting partners that will match your level of skill." I mentally rolled my eyes. I wasn`t exactly bad at Herbology. In fact, I had gotten an O on my report card for the first term. I just didn`t want to be paired with an insufferable git. But sadly, that`s exactly what Professor Beery had in mind.

I think it was his bad luck that had rubbed off on me. You see, Professor Beery was known for his unfortunate luck throughout the school. He was an alright bloke, and a very good teacher. It`s just, he almost set fire to the whole forbidden forest, just by trying to pick up the papers he dropped. (Long story) As I was saying, I think the Professors luck had been rubbed off on me. Because that day, I, Charlotte Joyce, was paired with the most insufferable git imaginable. Not to mention he was a Slytherin.

That`s right, I was paired with Snape. _Severus Snape._ The thing is, Snape and I didn`t do anything to eachother. We just, naturally had a mutual feeling of distaste for one another.

I mentally groaned when Beery said my name with his. I looked into Snape`s eyes, and immediately knew he was just as displeased as I was.

So obviously I wasn`t in a very good mood that day. And finally, Sirius Black made me crack.

* * *

I stormed into the Transfiguration room. "What`s got your knickers in a twist?" The cursed boy behind me asked. "Nothing Black, just leave me alone." I could feel the water rising, just waiting to burst out of the dam. He snorted, "Yeah right, c`mon tell me Joyce." I shook my head at him. "What get stuck in detention because you didn`t have a hall pass?" He smirked. I turned to him, "Oh no I have my hall pass right here." I put my hand in my pocket and pulled it out, with my middle finger up. Black looked shocked and turned around, muttering "Stupid bitch."

I smirked, suddenly felling in a slightly better mood, _slightly. _Our teacher walked into the classroom, with us saying "Hello Professor." In unison. Behind me, I heard Sirius whispering about something. The water started rising even more. _He could go to hell for all I care. _

Did I mention I was sensitive when people talked about my weight? Well, I am. So you can imagine my reaction when I hear Black whisper to his moron friends, "She has so many chins, you can't be sure of which one she's going to talk out of next. She probably can`t hear a word I say, she`s so ignorant." I turned around. The dam just burst.

I could tell by Black`s expression, he didn`t regret it. No matter how hurt I looked. He was actually _smirking_. That. Was. The last straw. "YOU KNOW WHAT, BLACK? YOU CAN GO TO HELL FOR ALL I CARE. YOU ARE AN INCONSIDERATE, SELFISH, WANKY, LITTLE _TWAT_. WHY DON`T YOU JUST TAKE A LONG WALK OFF OF A SHORT PEIR!" I was panting, and I realized that everyone was now looking at me with shock, including McGonagall.

"Miss Joyce…" She stuttered, "Never in my life... Such Language!" I picked up my stuff and ran out of the room._ Bloody hell. The dam blew._

* * *

I went up to our dorm rooms. When I got there, I just laid down onto the nice sating blue sheets and made myself comfortable. I wasn`t even physically tired. Today was just a long day. I guess I never really noticed how beautiful our dorm really was.

This room, like the common room, was very spacey and had a dome shape. There were two white-wood four poster beds, with blue satin quilts. There were copper intricate designs on the white walls, meeting to a column in the middle of the dome.

I eyed two copper curtains and pulled them aside as I came face-to-face with a balcony with an _Amazing _view. I sighed, going over what I said to Sirius Black. A pang of guilt made itself known in my chest. _Don`t feel guilty, he deserved it._ A true intellectual person does not take their anger out on someone else though. _But, he already knew you were angry, he was just trying to push your buttons more. _

After a brief argument with myself, I came to the conclusion that I would acknowledge I did something wrong, but not apologize.

I woke up next morning, grateful that it was a Saturday. Marlene stopped me, "Charlie, what happened yesterday in Transfiguration?" I turned to her, seeing her big brown doe eyes made me almost crack. "Black insulted me and I was already in a retched mood, so I cracked." She smiled, "Oh, well then I`m surprised you didn`t `crack` sooner." We both looked at eachother, and burst out laughing at the same time. I was grateful for Marlene. We could consult eachother, knowing the other wouldn`t be judgmental, and we could have a seious manner at one moment, and then burst out with laughter the next.

And I forgot completely about my `acknowledgment` of my oh-so-terrible actions.

**Just letting you know, I won`t be able to update much this month because my mom is into this new thing called '****exercise'...terrible right?**

**And here`s a sneak peak at my next chapter! :D**

I cursed and bent down to pick it up, noticing a small sheet of notebook paper on the ground. I unfolded the paper and saw in scraggly handwriting:  
_Thank you._

**Did you like it? Hate it? If either, review!**


	3. Conflicts

_Behavior is what a man does, not what he thinks, feels, or believes._

_-Emily Dickinson_

I walked up to the table with everyone staring at me. I turned to Marlene, who I just sat next to. "Why is everyone looking at me like that?" Marlene shrugged and I felt a tap on my shoulder. "You mean you don`t know?" I heard Robert say. _If I knew I was going to sit next to him, I would have sat somewhere else._

I shook my head at him. He sighed and pointed out in the hallway, "Go look out there." I shrugged and took Marlene out into the hallway where we saw something that nearly made me scream out in rage.

CHARLOTTE JOYCE IS A FAT PUREBLOOD SLUT WHO HATES MUDBLOODS

Marlene gasped and tried to wash it off with her wand. It wouldn`t work. I pointed my wand at it and simply said, "_Confringo_." As if it were a second nature. Immediately the wall came crashing down from the blasting curse I sent it. I picked up a piece of the rubble and examined it.

STB

I froze. I didn`t know what the `T` was for, but I sure as _hell_ knew what the `S` and `B` were. My fist clenched_. Sirius Black_. As in, the boy who just declared war on me. Sirius black, as in, the boy who left his signature there just to make sure his friends saw the oh-so-clever prank. Big Mistake.

"Charlie?" Marlene asked me, frightened, obviously knowing a bad mood when she sees one. I turned to her and put on my most convincing smile. "I`m fine, Marlene." She opened her mouth to say something, but thought twice about it when McGonagall walked in.

"Ms. Joyce? Did you do this?" She asked in a timid voice. "Professor McGonagall, I do believe you should let me deal with this." A very soft but stern voice came from behind us. I almost cowered under Dumbledore`s disappointing look.

I saw James walking down the hallway merrily. He spotted us, stopped in his tracks, and turned around. As he walked away I scowled, _he`s nothing like a true Gryffindor, cowering git. _

"Ms. Joyce, I do think we should head on to my office." The man said, his voice laced with disappointment. I said nothing, but instead, walked down the corridor to see a particularly nasty-looking demon-looking goblin perched on a stone. "Password." It grumbled, obviously not pleased with his job. "Lemon Toadstool." He replied in a very serious manner.

If it were any other time, I would have laughed at the silly password. If it were any other time, I would have maybe even poked fun at him for it. This, however, was not that time. This time, I was in trouble for something big. The statue came alive and pulled something that resembled a chain up, revealing a flight of steps.

I followed the old wizard up the steps, trying to make sure I wasn`t stepping on his robe. He opened the door, to reveal a certain curly haired kid, whom I never wanted to see in my life again. Dumbledore walked over to his desk and motioned for me to sit. I shook my head at him, "No thank you, professor. I will just deal with my punishment unknowingly. Now goodbye!"

I turned towards the opened doors, but the doors wouldn`t let me out. "I do believe we still have some issues to work out, Ms. Joyce, Mr. Black." I scoffed and waltzed over to the chair. "So sir, please do go on about these _problems_." Black stated sarcastically, shooting me a glare. Dumbledore sighed with what seemed like stress, and my anger was quickly replaced with guilt.

"Sir the thing is-" We both started in unison. Dumbledore held his hand up, "I know exactly what happened, and on both of your parts this was _unacceptable_. I will lock you both up in here all night if I have to get you to cooperate."

"Well that`s not fair! He started it by writing filthy stuff on the walls and poking fun at me the whole time! I don`t know why I have to breathe the same _air _as him let alone-"Black cut me off.

"I started it?! You were the one who just had to embarrass me in front of the whole class! When we were all poking fun, that`s exactly what we were doing, _poking fun._ How was I supposed to know you had such a big stick up your arse that you wouldn`t be able to handle some _harmless fun_? You are such a bi-"

"ENOUGH!"

Fortunately he wasn`t able to finish what he said, or I might`ve strangled him. We both turned to the professor whom, if I were guessing, was_ very_ angry. Even though his face wasn`t red, or he wasn`t screaming, there couldn`t have been _anything _scarier.

"Now, I will be leaving you two here until you can work out these _issues_. Don`t even try getting out Mr. Black, I dare say I wouldn`t fall for even the most complex of your tricks." I snickered while Black grimaced. Dumbledore got up and was almost out of the door when I stopped him, "Surely you can`t be serious professor? I won`t be able to survive another second-"He cut me off.

"Ms. Joyce, although I am most impressed by that flawless _Confringo_ spell, I do believe my patience is wearing out." I shut my mouth almost immediately. I could hear Black snickering behind me. _Stupid git._ Before I was able to curse him into next week, Dumbledore took both of our wands.

With one last glance, and with a little twinkle in his eye, Dumbledore walked out of the room. _I don`t need a wand to beat him into oblivion anyway._

* * *

**Thirty Minutes Later**

"YOU IDIOT!" I screamed throwing a rather expensive-looking vase at him. "I swear you`ve gone mad." He murmured with a nonchalant attitude, which only pissed me off more.

"IF I WERE GOING MAD YOU WOULD BE THE ONLY REASON!" I screamed again. "Ignorant bitch." He mumbled while dodging another glass decoration. That`s where I broke. You could call me fat. You could call me annoying. Hell, you could even call me ugly.

But I would _never_ stand for someone insulting my intelligence.

"Excuse me?" I asked him quietly. I saw his face go from cockiness to uneasiness. "Sorry, I didn`t mean-"

"Oh I`m sure that`s exactly what you meant _Sirius_." I interrupted, still keeping my voice quiet. "Hasn`t your daddy taught you better? Coming from the infamous Black family, I`m sure you have learned _some _manners." I`ll admit, it was a low blow. I knew what was happening with his family, hell I was sure every wizard in London knew about the `Gryffindor Black`, but at that moment, I didn`t regret it one bit.

His face became consumed by rage, "I`m sorry. With that voice I just mistook you so much for your _mother_." Ouch. That hurt. "I`m sure she disciplined you _very_ well, so I expected better manners from the _Joyce _family." Double hit.

"Don`t talk about disciplining to me Mr. Black." I hissed, "Last I heard, you received a howler for your _misplacement_ in Gryffindor. I do think the hat would reconsider if it saw you right at this moment." He looked like I just slapped him. Which, considering my words, I might as well have. "Oh really? At least my family had the _decency _to send it in private. Yours was in the Great Hall in front of _everyone_! And might I add, _your_ family disowned you. I can`t see why though, you`re just like the lot of them, Death Eaters and such-"

He stopped when he saw my face. I could tell when realization hit him, _he had crossed the line_. "Joyce, I-"

I held my hand up to cut him off, trying not to flinch at my last name. Thankfully, as if god sent him, Dumbledore walked in. As quickly and quietly as I could, I snatched my wand out of the headmaster`s hand and walked out of the office, leaving a sorry Black and a disappointed Dumbledore.

I turned around the corner and came face to face with nothing but a dead end. This only fueled my anger. I screamed and punched the wall as hard as I could. I couldn`t explain why I was so angry, I just was. Looking back at it, I guess I was just going through hormones and such.

I stormed into the common room, not even bothering to talk to Robert, and went right up to my dorm. I opened the doors to the balcony and took a deep breath of the fresh air I was hoping for. While I stood there staring at the night sky I knew, _it wasn`t enough_.

I felt so claustrophobic, even in my large room. I`m sure at that moment I would`ve felt the same way no matter where I was. But that didn`t matter, I knew one thing for sure. I had to take a walk.

I grabbed my cloak and made my way outside the castle, instantly taking off immediately after I stepped outside. I didn`t care where I was going. I just needed to go _somewhere_. I ran off all of the stress, all of the shit, and most of all: all of the Siriusness (**A/N haha, siriusness get it? Ah...nevermind.).**

* * *

When I must`ve run around the grounds twice when I finally got tired. When I stopped, I was just a few yards away from the Whomping willow. I backed away, hearing enough stories about the infamous tree, and sat down, leaning against a pine instead.

I looked up at the stars, the vast beauty showing in this clear night. I wondered what people found so fascinating about the stars. I`m guessing it`s because, when you see a tiny speck in the pitch black sky, you seem to note the impossibility of a 5,000,000 km big ball of gas. And that`s the thing with human beings, seeing something impossible become possible. It starts to seem like the small things don`t matter.

Then, I took in the full moon. It was gorgeous, nothing like I`ve ever seen before. Full of pure white light, illuminating the dark sky. Suddenly, I saw someone appear from the Whomping willow. Wait, nevermind, not some_one_, but some_thing_.

In front of me appeared a big, black, wolf. I`ll admit, it scared me. Hell it scared me so much I almost started screaming. I do know, however, that wolves can smell fear. And just because of that, I pushed my fear aside and made eye contact with the animal.

I saw something in those eyes, recognition, that was _human_. I noticed the full moon, the mysterious dog from the Whomping willow, and being able to put two and two together, "You`re a werewolf." I breathed.

The dog nodded slowly, obviously gaining some of its stability back. I assumed that meant we were going into the next day slowly. I inched over, first slowly, then I got a bit quicker. The dog growled at me a few times, but when it did, I just stood where I was, then I would continue walking towards it.

Finally I got so close to the dog I was able to see scratches all over his body. "I`m sorry. Don`t worry, I don`t know who you are but I promise I won`t tell." I could read surprise on the dog`s face, obviously from my kindness. Then, as the sun started to rise, the dog started to change.

"Could you please turn around?" A voice said between a growl and a whisper. I quickly turned around, giving the werewolf privacy. When everything was finally silent, I was able to face the Whomping willow again, only to find the person gone.

I dropped my wand in relief, having the after-effect of my adrenaline rush. I cursed and bent down to pick it up, noticing a small sheet of notebook paper on the ground. I unfolded the paper and saw in scraggly handwriting:

_Thank you._

* * *

"Where were you last night?" Marlene asked as I came into the dorm. "I went out for a walk and fell asleep, sorry." I replied. "Oh good! I thought Dumbledore expelled you!" She exclaimed. I laughed weakly and checked the clock. "7:50? Merlin I only have 5 minutes to get dressed and take a shower!"

Marlene giggled, "Not to worry, I learned a new spell for that! It will wear off after lunch, which you should use as time to wash up." I smiled brightly at her, "Marlene you`re a genius!" She brought her wand up and concentrated, "_Perluo_."

I felt refreshed, as if all that gunk and grime from the grounds had washed away. She turned me around and said, "See? Good as new!" I grimaced at my reflection. You see, I wasn`t exactly the most attractive girl. All right, my femininity was a level zero.

I had a very short murky brown bob that barely went past my ears, acne that covered my whole face, , and to top it all off: I was fat. My favorite aspect of my appearance were my hazel-green eyes, problem was, my big, chunky, black, square-rimmed glasses hid them. I sighed and walked out of the dorm, suddenly not feeling very happy.

* * *

Marlene and I didn`t have time for breakfast and just went straight to Transfiguration. I walked in and saw Peter Pettigrew, in _my_ seat. "Ah, Ms. Joyce," McGonagall said aloud, "Since you and Ms. McKinnon like to run your mouths so much, I figured we should start this semester off with a new seating arrangement." Marlene sighed with irritation and sat next to Pettigrew. I looked around and saw one empty seat next to…Lupin.

_Well at least it`s not Peter Pettigrew. _I went over to Lupin and dropped my books on the way. I heard Black snort and my agitation grew. _Never mind, if I`m going to sit next to Lupin and in front of Black and Potter, I`d rather take my chances with Pettigrew. _

Then, something happened. Something that might as well thrown the whole world off balance because this thing was just impossible. Lupin, as in _Remus Lupin_, bent down to help me, as in _Charlotte Joyce_. "Thanks." I squeaked out, as he handed me one of my books. "Not a problem." He replied with a warm smile.

Everyone looked shocked, hell even Black couldn`t hide his surprise. Lupin then went back to his desk and acted like nothing happened. I hesitantly got up and sat down next to him.

"Lupin?" I asked, not even bothering to listen to McGonagall go on about something I already knew much about. (Yes, I do read ahead, most Ravenclaws do) "Hmm?" He answered, obviously not paying the lecture much attention either. "Well, I was just wondering, why did you help me? Don`t you and the rest of the morons hate me?" He chuckled slightly, "Well, I can`t speak for the rest of them but, you`ve never done me any wrong. So why should I not help you out?" I realized I couldn`t answer his question, because he had a point. I returned to my books and started taking notes on her lecture.

"Charlie?" Lupin asked on our way out. I hummed in response, "Please, call me Remus." I looked up at him in shock. "Umm, ok?" He nodded and started to walk out of the classroom, seeming to be in a hurry. I stared after him as he left. I shrugged it off as Remus passed by his friends, who were also giving him quizzical looks.

Marlene walked up to me, "What was that all about?" She asked. I looked at her and replied, "I have no idea." And with that, we continued on with our day.

* * *

While nothing happened for the rest of our day, Remus did seem to want to hang out a lot. I could tell his friends disapproved of this, though he obviously didn`t mind them. He would always meet with me in the library, or sit with me outside. Sometimes we would go on for hours, just talking about absolutely nothing.

"Remus?" I asked him, while he was reading, "Yes?" He looked up from his book. "Never mind, I just found the answer." He chuckled a bit and went back to studying.

It was the week before Winter Break, and midterms were coming up. Remus and I were studying in the library, while the group of morons stared at us from a distance. "Your moronic group is staring." I whispered, making eye contact with Potter. He sighed, "I told you not to call them morons." I laughed at him a bit, "But they are! They always make fun of me, and I think they disapprove of me hanging out with you." I mock pouted at him.

"Ha-ha. Well let them disapprove, I like hanging out with you, and so I will." I felt heat rise up to my cheeks as he said that. I guess you could say that over the months, I have developed a little _crush _on Remus. I know! I`m an idiot for liking one of the Morons, but seriously, he is a really awesome guy.

"So what are you doing for Winter Break?" He asked me, obviously giving up on studying. "Well I`ll stay at Hogwarts, I guess." His face brightened up, "Brilliant! James, and I are all staying at Hogwarts too! Sirius and Peter would stay, but they`re is being forced to go to their parents." I flinched a little at the mention of Black`s name.

While Remus`s and I`s relationship became much better, Black`s and I`s worsened. I recall during our Astronomy class, while I was gazing intently at the stars, Black knocked my telescope over, nearly taking my eye out in the process. I had to go to Madame Promfery and stayed in the hospital wing for a week! There is one rule thatI held of the utmost importance- studies above everything.

I got him back though, because I snuck some explosion powder into his goblet during lunch, which, effectively scorched his oh-so-valuable hair. Now, as I had one golden rule, so did Sirius- Nobody _ever _touches his hair. Thus, started the Joyce-Black war.

"Sirius isn`t that bad." He said, noticing my tense state. "And neither are the rest of my friends, you just have to get to know them." I snorted, "Oh yes, because they have definitely given me a chance." Remus looked at me skeptically, "They`ve given you a better chance than what you`ve given them!" He snapped. _Woah, obviously I need to back off a bit._

"Fine." I sighed, "I`ll give Potter a chance over Winter Break." Remus grinned happily at me, "But if I still don`t like him, you owe me five galleons!" I told him, putting my hand out. He didn`t hesitate to take my hand and say, "Deal."

"Good. Prepare to owe me five galleons, and stop ginning like that, it`s getting quite creepy." I teased. His smile didn`t even falter as we went back to studying. I have to admit though, my smile didn`t falter either.

* * *

"Charlie, meet James. James, meet Charlie. You guys are going to have a new beginning!" I groaned as I shook Potter`s hand. "Well, this is an…_interesting_ way to start off Christmas Break." Potter said through gritted teeth. "Likewise, Potter." I told him, mocking his hesitance to shake my hand.

I saw him smirk lightly. He took out a Butterbeer from his bag and handed it to me. "Thanks." I said, feeling a bit awkward. "Sure." He replied, obviously not noticing my tension. He then turned to give me a huge fake smile and said, "So now, what interesting stories do you have for us?"

* * *

"Honestly, I was MORTIFIED!" Remus yelled at us, not so amused. James and I were laughing so hard, that my stomach started hurting. "And she-she called it small?" I asked him, struggling to keep my composure. Remus flushed a bit, "Yes, she said let me take a look at your Pee Wee! In front of the whole class too! The audacity of Nurses these days." I just couldn`t stop laughing.

"It`s not_ that_ funny." Remus murmured as we started to quiet down. "Now Charlie, I`m sure you have an embarrassing story to amuse us?" James asked me cheekily. "Actually I do, James. Though this one is much worse." James`s smile grew when I called him by his name. "Go on then," He motioned for me to tell my story.

"All right, so this actually happened a few months ago…" James immediately started laughing, "Stop it! Anyway, so we needed to go swimming for our Physical Exam right?" Remus nodded, "And I went into the locker room, stripped down, and got into one of the showers. So I heard some mumbling, and I went outside to check if Marlene and my other friends were there.

"So I peak out of the shower and I don`t see anyone. I then turn around the corner looking for them and to my surprise…" I bit my lip, not wanting to reveal the embarrassing end. James grew impatient, "And then?" Motioning for me to go on. I sighed and finally gave in, "I saw about twenty seventh year boys! Twenty!" They immediately started laughing, "And I was naked! So here was this little 12-year-old girl, who was standing naked in front of twenty 18-year-old boys. It was a NIGHTMARE! Honestly!"

Remus and James would not stop laughing, much to my humiliation. "You know Charlie? You`re not that bad." I smiled at him, "Thanks. But I could say the same for you!" He gave me a cheeky grin, obviously a little bit pissed from the Butterbeer. "You know, I thought you might have a stick up your arse from what Sirius told me but…" He paused and twisted up his face, as if looking for the right words. "But, you`re actually pretty awesome!"

"Because we all know Sirius is just soo trustworthy." I drawled, taking a swig of Butterbeer. James chuckled a bit, "You know you just seem to get Sirius at bad times." I chuckled too, "Is he always in a bad mood then?" James`s smile faltered, "I know you`re a pretty cool girl and all but, I won`t let you talk about my mate that way."

"Alright, I know." I waved my hand and brushed him off. I knew they were mates, but I still couldn`t see how someone as awesome as James had to hang out with someone as bad as Black. "So," I drawled out, "James, have any embarrassing stories?" I gave him a cheeky grin as his ears started to turn red.

"No, not really…" I raised my eyebrows at him. "Ugh, don`t give me that look. Fine! I do have one about me and Sirius." I started laughing, still pretty pissed. "Oh please," I drawled, "Do tell. I hope it's especially embarrassing about Black." He chuckled a bit, "All right then. So Sirius and I have been dealing with the Gryffindor first year girls, who are all prudes by the way, because we had a few…er…_conflicts _with them." Remus laughed a little and leaned in to whisper, "They tried sneaking into the girl`s dorm rooms." I stifled a laugh, and motioned for James to go on. "Yes. Well anyway, these girls decided to sneak into our bedroom and take out almost every article of clothing we owned." I started laughing, "And so we were left walking around Hogwarts in towels!"

My eyes widened, "So you are the guys who decided to flash the whole school…" I grinned, "Bet the girls must`ve enjoyed the show!" I waggled my eyebrows as he laughed. We were all having a great time untill, BOOM! I heard the portrait door slam open.

"What. The. Hell." Black stated. James shot him a grin, "Why are you back so early Sirius? I thought your mum had to drag your arse out of school." We all laughed, which just seemed to infuriate Black more. He gave a fake smile, "I managed to get away from her James, now why are you hanging out with this bitch." James frowned while I giggled. _He really thinks I`m the bitch? _

"C`mon Sirius, it`s all just fun and games!" Remus interjected. I laughed slightly, "Yeah Black! Who put a stick up your arse?" Black frowned as Remus, James, and I burst into laughter. "Oh god, you`re all pissed aren`t you?" He asked, rubbing his forehead. I frowned, "No! Not really…Ok maybe a little bit."

James started laughing at my antics. Remus stood up straight, "Well I just decided to sit back and watch them, thinking about the massive hangover their going to have tomorrow." Black and Remus laughed. "Yeah, you`re right. But still, I can`t believe you guys let her into Gryffindor."

"I tried to tell him! Stupid contract says I have to listen to all Gryffindors! But I`m done with you lot!" The fat lady screamed, reminding us all that the Portrait door was still open. James got up and smiled sheepishly while walking to the door. He started to close it, muffling the lady`s screams of frustration.

When he finally got the door shut I burst out in laughter. Sirius cleared his throat, "Well she`s so pissed she resembles a hyena!" James and Remus chuckled. "Go to hell Sirius." I laughed, still half joking. All amusement from Sirius`s face faded away. James stopped laughing too after seeing Sirius`s face, "C`mon, it was only a joke Sirius." Oh, and here I though we were actually going to _get along _for five seconds.

Sirius only smirked menacingly. "Oh I would, but it looks like the whole Joyce family have already got a one way ticket there." We all gaped at him in horror. "Well! I think we should all hit the hay! Break or not, we still have rules to follow." James said, obviously trying to ignore the dangerous aura. I ignored all of them, "So...you want to talk about families huh?" _Let the Games begin._

**And that`s it folks! Sorry it took me so long to write it, my laptop is malfunctioning and I`m actually currently using the Library computer...(The librarian has been giving the same dirty look for the past hour...) Well anyway, review for my dedication! And I would love to give a shout out to paigemitchell98 who is my first reviewer! Wooo! Yeah! Go Paige! (I`m assuming that`s your name) And by the way, she`s actually not that pretty _yet. _Let`s just say...puberty did her well...heh...heh. And she does have a talent! It`s her brains! (Though some may consider that a curse ;) ) well anyway! Review!**_  
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